Convair F-106 vs Mc Donnel Douglas F-4B Phantom

In October 1961, the pentagon launched an air to air competition between Air Defence Command’s F-106 and Navy’s brand new F-4H1 Phantom. 153 sorties were flown, half for each type, from altitudes 500-62.000 ft, during which 349 valid interceptions were completed. Phantom was proved superior, mainly due to the newer APQ-72 radar which showed better availability and reliability. The -6’s MA-1 was said to have some repeated problems. So Tactical command was to buy the F-4 and ADC would get no new 6’s….

BUT…..

since no one likes to lose, especially when knows that he wasn’t favored at all, Convair complaint that the very best navy pilots were put against the …very worst 6 drivers, and the maintenance of the -6 was not appropriate. Convair engineers knew that the -6 had a very serious potential in dogfights, and in later years a pilot said :” the F-4 had longer ranged missile (AIM-7) but we kicked F-4 butts each and every day in the visual arena. We owned the vertical on him, we got our energy back much much faster, had as good or better sustained turn, most altitudes, and our instantaneous turn rate was also as good. He could never match our zoom when we hit the fight with any sort of knots. Falcon missiles had logic the early Sparrow were missing. Falcon loved the beam intercept (early Sparrows hated it) and also loved ECM’s unlike the AIM-7.A pilot who have flown both types said : the -6, exhibited outstanding nose authority enabling the pilot to employ lag maneuvers to gain position to fire AIM-4G directly at the tailpipe, then pull the nose into a lead position to employ the AIM-4F or the guns. The altitude capability of the -6, meant that we comfortably CAP at 45.000+ ft, perform a pincer front to stern attack with IRST and slide in behind a flight of F-4’s without notice.